London, February 25, 2026, 08:32 GMT — Regular session
- NatWest shares rose about 1% in early London trading.
- The bank disclosed a fresh batch of repurchases under its buyback programme.
- Investors are watching the Bank of England’s March 19 rate decision and NatWest’s next set dates.
NatWest Group Plc (NWG.L) shares rose 1% to 610.4 pence by 0822 GMT, up 6 pence on the day, after the lender disclosed a new round of buybacks. (Investing)
The move is modest, but it lands as investors lean on two familiar drivers for UK bank stocks: capital returns and the path for interest rates. Buybacks can lift earnings per share by shrinking the share count, even when underlying growth is slow.
Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey told lawmakers a March cut was a “genuinely open question,” and Chief Economist Huw Pill warned policymakers should not be “beguiled” by headline inflation if it hits 2%. The next BoE decision is due March 19. (Reuters)
NatWest said in a U.S. filing it repurchased 739,078 ordinary shares on Feb. 24 through UBS, paying just over 601 pence per share on average across the London Stock Exchange and two other trading venues. It said it intends to cancel the shares and will hold 217.9 million shares in treasury after settlement, leaving 7.98 billion in issue excluding treasury stock. (SEC)
The bank also published final terms for a 750 million euro bond paying a 3.756% coupon before resetting to a floating rate — a structure that starts fixed and later moves with market rates — due in February 2037. (Investegate)
NatWest earlier this month reported 2025 operating profit before tax of £7.7 billion and a CET1 ratio of 14.0%, a key capital buffer, and said it had announced £4.1 billion of total distributions for 2025. It also flagged an additional £750 million share buyback. (NatWest Group)
The bank is trying to widen its fee income as well. It agreed on Feb. 9 to buy wealth manager Evelyn Partners for £2.7 billion including debt, and RBC Capital Markets analyst Benjamin Toms called it “transformational” for NatWest’s affluent offering; Jefferies analysts warned the price could dent earnings per share through 2028. (Reuters)
Peers such as Barclays and Lloyds have been trading off the same rate backdrop, with investors recalibrating what lower policy rates might mean for bank profitability and loan demand.
But a quicker-than-expected easing cycle could squeeze net interest margins, while any stumble integrating Evelyn — or a turn in UK credit quality — would test how much capital NatWest can return without cutting into buffers.
Next up, investors will watch the BoE’s March 19 decision, NatWest’s April 28 annual general meeting and the bank’s first-quarter results due May 1. (NatWest Group)
